"Messy, but in a cleansing sort of way..."

"Messy, but in a cleansing sort of way..." This was a phrase I read the other day as I was finishing the book So Long Insecurity by Beth Moore. This phrase hit me like a bullet... and really got me thinking.
How often does God have to allow things to be completely "messed" up to get our attention?
We have to get to the point that we are totally helpless and frustrated... emotionally...physically... and even spiritually whipped out... then we call out to God... "How could this happen?"... "Why Lord?"... and finally "HELP Lord.. I can't do this on my on!"
The story of God's on people, the Israelites, come to my mind... Look at how many times it took God to get their attention.
When they were able to finally get out of Egypt... Did you know that they were only 11 days from the Promise land? Then because of they're stubbornness and complaining... it took them 40 years! Huge difference!
Then once in the Promise land, God told them to keep His laws, but time and time again, generation after generation, the Israelites would slip into living like the people of the land. They worshipped Idols... and married into this sinful nation. Then God would allow one of their enemies to come in and take them captive. The Israelites would eventually cry out to God for help. God would raise up a judge to step in and lead the Israelites. After the judge died, God's people would fall again into sin... God would allow an enemy to step in again and take them captive... His people would cry out again... He would send a judge... This was a vicious cycle that happened way too many times. I read this and I think.. "Come on... learn from your past people!" (Read Judges)
All this first started because they disobeyed God and didn't complete the task of taking the land of Canaan. Each tribe cherished a fierce independence that led to everyone doing whatever seemed right in his own eyes.

Do we do that?
Yes! We are a very independent people... It is so easy to get caught up in our lives... do what we think is right... justify our actions... do things our way to fit our needs/wants. We don't want to admit it, but we put God up on a shelf. We make other things our idols and God states that He is a jealous God,(Exodus 20:5.) God has to get our attention! So, sometimes He allows things to get 'messed' up to get our attention. Then we realize our need/want for Our Heavenly Father, we take Him off the shelf, and cry to Him to help us!

The amazing thing is... God shows mercy... and compassion... and forgiveness to us. He shows it to us time after time after time... just like He did to the Israelites.
We don't deserve it... and... that is true love!

God showed me in Beth Moore's phrase... "Messy, but in a cleaning sort of way..."
That He will 'mess' things up to put them back in the 'proper' order... His order.
These are the times I feel Him the most... the times when it HAS to be up to Him... because I can't clean up the mess without Him. It is a comfort to know that I don't have to do it on my own.

Angel Song by Sheila Walsh & Kathryn Cushman

I just finished reading a fabulous fiction novel by Sheila Walsh and Kathryn Cushman entitled Angel Song. This is an inspiring and well written book that pulled at my heart strings. I truly couldn't put it down... I smiled... and I even shed a tear or two.

Book Description...
When Annie Fletcher returns to Charleston to see her younger sister, Sarah, receive her master’s degree, she finds herself riding in the back of an ambulance, watching helplessly as Sarah fights for life. During the ride, Sarah appears to talk to someone who is not there, humming a melody Annie has never heard before.
Neighbor Ethan McKinney lends a shoulder when Sarah unexpectedly dies. And as a carpenter, Ethan volunteers to help Annie get the Fletcher family home into shape for selling. Ethan’s presence is distracting, but what troubles Annie is her neighbor Tammy’s 12-year-old son. Keith has Down Syndrome and the guile to believe he can see and hear angels.
God begins to reveal Himself to Annie – both in her newfound friends and through heart-rending and clearly supernatural events. Annie discovers faith in God, finally experiencing the comfort that His angels really do surround us.



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